The present invention is directed to a device that minimizes side blast or concussion resulting from expanding propellant gases exiting out of side ports from a Muzzle Device of a firearm upon firing of a projectile from said firearm. Certain embodiments, described below, also reduce muzzle flash from propellant gasses in addition to minimizing side concussion.
A muzzle brake is a device attached to the muzzle of a firearm that reduces felt recoil (rearward movement) and counters lateral (vertical, diagonal and horizontal) movement of the firearm's muzzle upon firing of said firearm while a compensator reduces lateral and horizontal muzzle movement with minimal reduction in felt recoil. This is achieved by redirecting expanding propellant gasses and the direction force exerted on the firearm by said expanding propellant gasses sideways through a plurality of side ports which results in said mitigation of felt recoil and improved muzzle control. Since the side ports redirect expanding propellant gasses sideways, it creates an issue when the shooter is shooting prone (on or near the ground) because the side directed gasses blow debris and dust toward the shooter as illustrated in FIG. 8. This prevents the shooter from making quick follow-up shots since the shooters vision may be temporarily impaired by the stirred-up debris and dust.
Reduction in muzzle movement upon firing a firearm is highly desired in combat and competitive shooting hence most competitive shooters use a muzzle brake. This allows for quicker and more accurate follow-up shots on semi-auto mode and also increases precision on fully automatic mode. There are a number of muzzle devices on the market that work well in reducing such muzzle movement including those described in U.S. Pat. No. 7,954,414 entitled “Muzzle Brake” issued Jun. 7, 2011 and US Patent Application Publication No. 2011/0271575 entitled “Muzzle Devices and Methods of Tuning Thereof” published Nov. 10, 2011; with the prior disclosing a muzzle brake and the later a compensator, both of which are hereby incorporated by reference herein. These devices, although purported to reduce side blast still direct a substantial amount of propellant gasses and sideways thereby distracting fellow shooters and kicks up ample dust and debris when shooting prone or in dusty environments.
The present invention is intended to be used in conjunction with a Muzzle Device (muzzle brakes or compensators) to reduce or nearly eliminate undesired side-blast or concussion from the Muzzle Devices. The preferred embodiment of the CRD of the present invention comprises, a cylindrical body with a proximal and distal end that fits around or covers a Muzzle Device, a plurality of exhaust ports or vents of a predetermined size, shape, arrangement and quantity, around the cylindrical body of the CRD allow proper venting of expanding propellant gases from the Muzzle Device to thereby enable the Muzzle Device to still function, i.e., minimize felt recoil and muzzle movement upon firing of a projectile, when said CRD is in place. The CRD also includes a means for attaching the CRD to a Muzzle Device and an annular wall around the distal end. The annular wall may be flat concave, or convex in shape and include one or more forward exhaust ports.
The CRD of the present invention basically covers the radial ports of the Muzzle Device and acts as a diffuser of expanding propellant gases upon firing of a firearm thereby reducing the side blast by redirecting most of the expanding gasses forward yet allowing enough gasses to exit laterally thus resulting in reduced lateral muzzle movement of the firearm with minimal side blast.
The CRD of the present invention is novel in that it is an all-in-one system, in a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the CRD includes a quick connect/disconnect functionality. The aforementioned plurality of strategically placed ports to allow the muzzle brake to perform similarly to how it would perform without the CRD in place, i.e., reduces muzzle movement and recoil when firing a shot thereby allowing for quick follow-up shots. The ports on the CRD is key to this system as it allows most of the blast to be directed forward but still allows the brake to function fairly normally.
The above described and many other features and attendant advantages of the present invention will become better understood by reference to the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying figures.